Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

The Majesties by Tiffany Tsao

5 reviews

annoyedhumanoid's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

re: the ending: ??? i mean, sure? it was a big twist that contradicted the entire narrative yet simultaneously (imo) amounted to nothing of significance; it just fell flat. the prose, oh boy. it's how i write when trying to sound smart in essays, unnecessarily florid. it had a promising concept, i was hooked just from the blurb, but it didn't live up and the entire time i wasn't all that interested.
cover design review: ★★★☆☆. intriguing at first glance, i like the yellow background and the texture and shadows of the paint strokes within the face, but other than that it's eh. this is not representative of the book i just read

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Drug use, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Car accident, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Suicide attempt, Xenophobia, Addiction, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, and Racism

Minor: Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Infertility, Abortion, Blood, Cancer, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Dementia, Terminal illness, and Vomit

re: animal cruelty and death: it's insects if that makes a difference

solspringsreads's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

UGH. Loved the beginning of this one, and I was hooked for pretty much the entirety of the book. Great premise, super comparable to We Have Always Lived in the Castle and Crazy Rich Asians, and the book really unfolds in a satisfying and interesting way.
And then we get to the big plot twist, and it just… completely lost me. It’s not that the plot twist was bad (and I even half-guessed it!) but it felt so unnecessary, like it cheapened so much of what made this book compelling and unique. Suddenly this book went from a well-crafted, layered metaphor about wealth, corruption, and family, to a schlocky thriller movie rated 64% on Rotten Tomatoes
I’ll read anything else this author puts out because I did really enjoy the majority of this book, but I’m beyond disappointed by the ending. (How can a plot twist both be predictable AND completely random? I wouldn’t have thought it possible until I read this book.)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Xenophobia, Violence, Murder, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Gaslighting, Eating disorder, Dysphoria, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Infidelity, Medical content, Islamophobia, and Drug use

Minor: Addiction and Misogyny

yunsq's review

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Racism

Moderate: Domestic abuse

Minor: Alcoholism and Drug use

kikicochrane's review

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

There's no doubt that Tsao is a talented writer, and her use of descriptive words does transport you to the scenes that Gwendolyn is recounting as she lays comatose in a hospital bed.

As other reviewers have mentioned, this is a slow burn and the lack of enjoying the characters for their personalities does make it feel longer than the book actually is. I agree with the other reviewer that the publisher did a disservice for this being categorized as a thriller rather than a family mystery saga.

Overall I enjoyed this read, the story came together at the end and the reason why Estella murdered her entire family became clear. I especially liked how Tsao was able to weave the story behind Bagatelle throughout the story.

Content Warning: Themes of domestic abuse primarily psychological and emotional are strong themes in this novel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder, Infertility, Infidelity, and Sexual content

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, and Racism

lou_o_donnell's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Dementia, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Car accident, and Domestic abuse